NEC Completes Energy Storage System for Consumers Energy

NEC Energy Solutions has announced the completion of an energy storage system for Consumers Energy.

The NEC energy storage solution, located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, includes two independent 280kW/340kWh DSS® energy storage systems and NEC’s proprietary AEROS® controls software. The energy storage system will enable Consumers Energy to investigate how energy storage can be used to avoid further system upgrades, smooth renewable energy production and support load/energy management. The storage system has been designed with the flexibility to increase the energy capacity to 1MWh or more.

The NEC energy storage system is located within Circuit West, a 13-block district on Grand Rapids’ west side where Consumers Energy is installing innovative electricity generation and distribution in a neighborhood with new, energy-efficient building construction.

“Today, there is very little storage on the grid, so electricity is generated just moments before you use it,” said Garrick Rochow, Consumers Energy’s senior vice president of operations. “With large batteries like NEC’s energy storage solution, we will make our grid more efficient, effective and sustainable. It’s a critical part of Michigan’s energy future and it’s happening here at Circuit West.”

“As the market for energy storage continues to grow, more customers are entering the market to test the viability of energy storage in their own applications. We know the many benefits of energy storage having been in the business for more than 12 years but it’s also common for customers new to storage to initially take a pilot approach,” said Steve Fludder, CEO for NEC Energy Solutions. “We are happy to be working with Consumers Energy on test projects like this and we anticipate this will lead to greater deployment of valuable storage across their service territory.”

The DSS® platform is scalable from 85kWh to 600kWh of energy storage capacity and offers from 100kW up to 710kW of power capability. As a standardized, UL safety-certified, AC-ready system including power conversion system, the DSS® product is preconfigured in outdoor-rated enclosures, compliant with all relevant regulatory and environmental requirements and is backed by up to a 10 year product warranty.